Solo sailors Aussie teen and Indian Navy commander round Cape Horn...water, wind or engine to power your boat?...Mystery death in Vanuatu still not solved...launching a boat - Thai style...and much more...

This week's excellent news is that both Jessica Watson, Australian 16-year-old and Dilip Donde, Commander in the Indian Navy, have successfully rounded the Horn and are heading towards the Falkland Islands.

Dilip will stop there as scheduled and repair his autopilot problems, while Jessica, intent on completing her journey 'non-stop and unassisted', will merely find calmer waters to 'rest' a little before heading for the Southern Ocean again.

Maybe it is Climate Change, which these days is probably blamed for much more than it is responsible, or maybe they were just incredibly lucky.

Both sailors sped past the Horn driven by what is, for the seas between Cape Horn and Antarctica, a front of mild wind and seas, of 40 knots and four metres respectively.

For Jessica, who had been becalmed only a few days before her crossing, it will be a great psychological triumph, and give her a boost for the next half of her journey, much of which will be in the Southern Ocean. For Dilip it will be another leg completed in his quest to become the first Indian national to solo circumnavigate the world by sailing boat.

Next Saturday, on the other hand, is hopefully D Day for Abby Sunderland, who, with her brother Zac Sunderland, was made 'Los Angeles Sportspersons of the Year' recently, attracting much criticism, as Abby hasn't sailed anywhere of significance yet.

Sailing a much faster boat, and several months younger than her Australian counterpart, Abby will be the hare in a tortoise and hare competition. Can she do it? Her Open 40 is a much flightier yacht than Jessica's slower and cruisier Sparkman and Stephens 36ft boat, and more difficult to manage in tough conditions. Let's hope the unpredictable waters around Cape Horn will be as kind to Abby as they were to Jessica.

In other news this week, valiant Geoff Holt crossed the Atlantic sailing solo– the first quad sailor to do so; the Ady Gil (former Earthrace) was sunk by a Japanese whaling ship; Somali pirates are claiming the kidnapped cruising sailors Paul and Rachel Chandler are 'too expensive to keep alive', and the mysterious death of a cruising sailor in Vanuatu is still unexplained after nine months.

More too - unlikely adventures, quirky tales and ambitious expeditions. Browse down the stories to see what catches your interest....

Sweet sailing

Nancy Knudsen, Editor

There's nothing can stop her now...Jessica Watson rounded the Horn! Nancy Knudsen, With a 'mere' 35-40 knots and a 'mere' three metres of swell, Jessica Watson in her 36ft yacht Ella's Pink Lady must have been the luckiest girl in the world as she rounded Cape Horn at 0940GMT today.... [more]Onsend this story

Product of the Week: New 12volt low-draw LCD TV Sail-World Cruising, Our product of the week is the new 19” marine LCD television from Majestic Global USA, which can be connected directly to any 12-volt source - without filters, inverters or in-line power boxes.... [more]Onsend this story

Another ancient sailing ship to set forth Nadim Kawach,Emirates Business/Sail-World, When 15 Omani sailors set sail from the port of Muscat next month, it will mark the beginning of yet another attempt to recreate the amazing journeys of hundreds, sometimes thousands, of years ago.... [more]Onsend this story

Mystery death of cruising sailor unsolved after nine months. Lisa Mylchreest, The tragic death of a cruising sailor in Port Vila after she took a solution given to her by fellow cruising sailors for malaria sounds a warning bell to those travelling in strange waters and accepting unknown medications from other well-meaning but unqualified cruisers.... [more]Onsend this story

Northshore Yachts chooses Raymarine E Series Widescreen Liza Sticpewich, The first Southerly 49 built by UK-based Northshore Yachts, and on show at the Tullett Prebon London Boat Show, will feature a complete suite of navigational, communication and safety products from Raymarine. It will be one of the first sailing yachts to have the new E Series Widescreen HybridTouch, with ST60+ instruments and new HD High Definition digital radar.... [more]Onsend this story

Engine alternator? or water and wind power? - a comparison Larry Janke, How much do you need to use your boat to make utilising wind and water power a distinct advantage? If you rarely sail, you may decide that one more piece of gear to break down is just not worth it, and if you are crossing oceans, there's no question - but where is the cutoff point, and how do you work it out? Here Larry Janke, from SE Marine, compares alternator against Duogen:... [more]Onsend this story

Bloodhound, Queen Elizabeth's yacht, heading for Scotland Nancy Knudsen, One of the most famous classic yachts of all time has been purchased by the Royal Yacht Britannia Trust. Queen Elizabeth's former yacht, the 19.2m (63ft) Bloodhound, on which Princess Anne and Prince Charles learned to sail, is to be displayed in Scotland.... [more]Onsend this story

New ransom demand for sailors: 'Too expensive to keep alive' Des Ryan, As their time in captivity passes the 80 day mark, the UK's Daily Mail has reported two threatening telephone calls from Somali pirates who are keeping kidnapped cruising sailors Paul and Rachel Chandler hostage, with one caller revealing that Rachel Chandler had been beaten.... [more]Onsend this story

Predict Wind's 30% discount on year subs - going going... Sail-World Cruising, 'If there is one thing that is consistently on cruisers mind that would be weather' - cruiser Neil Schlossberg. 15th January is the last date to take advantage of discounts available for the state-of-the-art weather forecasting system from PredictWind. A 30% discount is nothing to be taken lightly, and the results from PredictWind are becoming legendary. Read on for some customer feedback.... [more]Onsend this story

She has sunk! Three videos from Ady Gil - Earthrace collision with Wha Powerboat-World.com, The Carbon fibre 24 metre (78 foot) bio-diesel powered Ady Gil, formerly Earthrace, the round the world powerboat record holder tangled with the Shonan Mauru 2 has now sunk... [more]Onsend this story

Geoff Holt first quadriplegic to cross the Atlantic KTB PR, Geoff Holt has just arrived in Tortola to become the first quadriplegic to sail across the Atlantic. He has sailed the 2,700 mile journey across the Atlantic on a 60ft purpose built catamaran Impossible Dream, unassisted in every aspect of the sailing.... [more]Onsend this story

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